Pride Month in a Small Indiana Town
My flag has not been set afire...yet.
Nearly a week into PRIDE 2025 and my goodness, this year just feels different, doesn’t it?
Speaking of different, I have a PRIDE flag hanging in front of my home for the first time ever. Although I live in a very small town, my road is a main thoroughfare that sees a hefty amount of traffic. When I hung that flag, I thought, “if just one person drives by, sees this flag and feels less alone in Indiana, worth it.”
When I tell people about a political sign or a symbol of support for a marginalized community I display outside my home, I am often met with a nervous laugh and the insistence they could “never” display such a thing in their neighborhood.
As soon as I hear that “never,” I launch into this little story:
Tiffany Stoner made a great run for the statehouse in 2024, seeking to represent Indiana’s 25th district. She only lost by 64 votes. I was impressed with her from the jump. During the campaign, I had the opportunity to be on a statewide call with her and she said, “if I’m brave enough to run, you should be brave enough to put a sign in your yard.”
She is spot on.
Democrats’ reluctance to publicly display political affiliation or social support in a place like Indiana plays right into the hands of the MAGA crowd. They want Democrats to believe they’re so outnumbered, they should just give up. Honestly, many have given up, just look at Indiana’s voter turnout. While Indiana may never be a shining star of the Democratic party, over 40% of Hoosiers are Democrats. That’s something.
My neighbor down the street displayed a swastika atop a Christmas tree in their front yard in December of 2024, but Democrats are afraid to display a rainbow?
When Democrats are silent, especially in “red” states, when we cower in our homes and only express our values in the privacy of the voting booth, we embolden the Nazis down the street.
So many people reach out to me on social media and thank me for my content because as a Democrat, a liberal, a progressive, they felt so alone in a place like Indiana. I usually respond with, “you’re not alone, you never were.” Bluesiers exist in Indiana and we would have a much easier time believing our vote matters if we felt even half as empowered to display a BLM sign as our neighbors feel displaying a swastika.